Sixth Year Potions
by Iva1201
Summary: Two-shot on the Marauder era – in their sixth year, Horace Slughorn forces Lily Evans and Severus Snape to continue working together in Potions, not taking into account (or rather refusing to see) that the two of them are no longer friends and do not even speak to each other. Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

**Sixth Year Potions**

 _by Iva1201_

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 _A/N: Nothing mine, just playing with JKR's creations. Two-shot on the Marauder era – in their sixth year, Horace Slughorn forces Lily Evans and Severus Snape to continue working together in Potions, not taking into account (or rather refusing to see) that the two of them are no longer friends and do not even speak to each other. Enjoy!_

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Horace Slughorn believed himself to be a moderately calm and most of the time overall friendly man who knew to greatly value the accomplishments of Hogwarts' students and graduates, no matter the House they belonged to. He might have favoured Slytherins a little as the Head of that House, but all in all he thought himself rather impartial in that matter – it were after all not only Slytherins who found influential or otherwise significant positions later in their lives. Horace Slughorn understood that and acted upon it – until, one day, he found out his friendly approach did not quite work with the two most talented pupils of that particulate decade, Miss Lily Evans from the House of Gryffindor and one Severus Snape, a member of his very own college.

The two young people, who had once amazed the whole faculty with the closest friendship they were able to recall between a Gryffindor and a Slytherin, evidently grew apart just after their OWLs, despite they both excelled at them. No member of the faculty was wiser as to why, although there were rumours circulating between the students which involved a few deeply insulting words next to a round of hexes. Fondly remembering the many successfully brewed and in many ways improved potions young Mr. Snape and his brewing partner, Miss Evans, had been able to produce during the previous five years, Horace Slughorn trusted that the tension between the two teenagers would pass over the summer.

Firm in his belief, Slughorn did not hesitate to nominate the pair for a new competition named _"The Bubbling Cauldron Full of Promising Glory"_ announced by the Ministry that very summer and targeted on young brewers between 15 and 25 years of age. The contest was meant to encourage the popularity of potions' brewing in the young wizarding community – and promised quite a few galleons to both the winners themselves as well as their teacher. It was a sad fact that both St. Mungo's and the Ministry itself were lacking young candidates for the mundane positions of Potioneers – although the Potion makers and inventors were constantly in high demand, especially seeing to the current difficult pre-war time.

Slughorn was particularly proud that it was one of his past pupils, Damocles Belby, who was, despite his youth, tasked with the Werewolf inhibitor research run by the Ministry. Yes, Horace had known Belby would make a shining career one day – bringing fame and prestige also to Slughorn who had taught him.

There was no reason why Lily Evans and Severus Snape could not follow in Belby's steps. Unless, and Slughorn refused to even consider the possibility, his present star pupils would refuse to not only work together but even exchange a single one-syllable word with each other.

Sadly, this was just how Horace Slughorn was to meet the two young wizards after the summer holidays between their fifth and sixth year; the old Potions Professor feeling deeply disappointed, in fact practically betrayed, and rightfully angry at the pair for crushing his hopes for another two collected trophies. But Horace Slughorn was anything if not cunning and a good Slytherin knew his ways to success – or at least so he believed.

" _The Bubbling Cauldron Full of Promising Glory"_ was to be won by Hogwarts' Sixth Year of the year 1977/1978.

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The front table to the left side of Slughorn's classroom had always been occupied by Lily Evans and Severus Snape in the past five years when it had come to the mixed Potions class of Slytherins and Gryffindors in their age group. Yet, on the first day of the NEWTs Potions they both were to attend, the front work bench was left empty. Young Mr. Snape eyed it with a bit of painful nostalgia when entering the classroom, and then followed to the rear of the room where he found an empty table for himself, clearly planning not to share his work space with anyone at all; Miss Evans did not even glanced in the direction of the table and seated herself next to Mary McDonald, who was her only Gryffindor girlfriend to make it into the NEWTs level Potions.

Watching his sixth class settling in, Horace Slughorn frowned upon watching his favourite pair of students taking separate seats. They had still not reconciled as it seemed. And there he was so very sure that they would put things to rights over the summer! Well, then, it was up to him to do it in their stead – and save his (and their) award and (a tiny bit of) well-deserved fame in _"The Bubbling Cauldron Full of Promising Glory."_

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"Amortentia, Draught of the Living Death, Felix Felicis, Veritaserum, Polyjuice Potion." Horace Slughorn listed, waving his plump hand in the direction of the respective cauldrons, passionately addressing his students. "Here you can see some of the most complicated and most intriguing potions ever invented by wizards and witches. Those of you who can master them in our NEWTs Potions class will not only pass their NEWTs with flying colours, but shall also – if wished so – easily obtain a Potioneer job. I would be absolutely willing to write you a very fine recommendation should you make it so far."

Slughorn gave his students a genial smile and opened his arms in an amicable gesture. "Indeed, I would be prepared to help you to fulfil your dreams. But in return I expect you all to apply yourself to the best of your abilities," he added sternly, his eyes suddenly trained at Severus Snape, swiftly changing their direction towards Lily Evans. "I will not tolerate anything less."

Horace Sluhorn trailed off, waiting for his words to sink in. He very much hoped that Mr. Snape and Miss Evans understood him well. Their marks at the NEWTs, no matter how many NEWTs they would achieve and how high their marks would be, would not help them in their job search in the Potions field; without his good word for them, far too many paths would be closed for them. He trusted they both realised what a waste that would be.

"Well then let us move to the real work now," Slughorn changed the topic once he felt his students had had enough time to consider his words. "There is much we need to cover this and the next year. Miss Evans, what smell does have Amortentia?"

Lily smiled, feeling relieved – she knew the reply to this and very much preferred to be quizzed on the subject than to consider the puzzling warning Slughorn had just imposed on them. "It smells differently for each individual, Professor, based on the favourite smells each person has. For me it is the perfume my mother uses, smelling after the lilies-of-the-valley, sea and honey."

"Perfectly correct, thank you, Lily." Slughorn beamed at her as was his habit. He turned to Severus then. "Mr. Snape, what can you tell us about Felix Felicis?"

It has taken Severus a moment to react, so deep in thoughts he had been – pondering over what Slughorn could have meant in his previous speech. He did not much like the possible answers that were coming up in his mind. While both Lily and the Gryffindors frowned at his disrespectful day dreaming, Avery kicked his leg from behind and hissed: "Snape, wake up." And Severus did, his eyes easily taking in Slughorn's outstretched hand which was still pointing towards the cauldron with the lucky elixir. He had very much considered brewing the draught over the summer so that Lily would listen to him when he would find the strength in him to attempt to apologise again – and very likely face another _'I am not interested.'_ But in the end the ingredients had proven to be too expensive for his greatly limited budget – and he also knew that there was no guarantee Lily would listen to him and become his friend once again anyway.

"Felix Felicis is considered to be liquid luck by many," Severus started to explain. "It always needs to be used sparingly and the outcome cannot be guaranteed – but those who have drunk it swear that they had one of their luckiest days after consuming it. Nevertheless, the long period needed to brew it and the expenses of the ingredients required for its production are not necessary worth the result."

Slughorn nodded and said, now sounding a bit reserved, as he – unlike Severus – did believe in the extraordinary power of the brew: "Correct as always, Mr. Snape. I however belong to those who have tried this _lucky elixir_ and I can certify that it indeed does its job. But you are right in assuming that it does not fix things by choice."

Slughorn's eyes flicked from Severus to Lily and back and he became painfully personal in his attempt to push them to work together again and salvage his presently much desired prize in doing so. It clearly did not matter to him that the other students were listening to him too. "People are cognitive beings, Mr. Snape, Miss Evans," he said sternly. "We think, speak and learn and, should we make a mistake, we try to make up for it. One of our important abilities is the capacity to apologise and to forgive. Think about it before you come here for the next lesson. I expect you two to sit in the front row and share the desk by then as you did before whatever happened in the spring."

That said, Slughorn turned away from them and started to quiz the rest of the class on the remaining potions on display, leaving Severus and Lily gobsmacked. Neither of them had expected the Professor to mix up in their personal affairs. But Slughorn had just done so – and clearly was not at all interested in their disapproval. Neither of them could gather why this mattered to him so much.

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It all became clear that very evening when they arrived to the Great Hall. Dumbledore, clothed in a disgustingly cheerful tone of pink with golden embroidery, rose to address the assembled students just before the dinner, giving a telling nod to Slughorn, who was seated just next to him that mealtime.

"Good evening everyone," Dumbledore started, swiftly gaining attention of the whole students' body. He did not address them frequently – in particular not so soon after the start of term. Students were instantly curious about what he had to share with them and readily interrupted their discussions. "I have some very exiting news for you. The Ministry of Magic decided it was time for a new student competition.

This time we shall compare your expertise in the enthralling art of potions making with the skills of young graduates as well as home schooled individuals of your age. Anyone above 15 is encouraged to take part in the main part of the contest, while the younger students may try their luck in the pupils' challenge. Your excellent Potions Professor, the Head of the Slytherin House and my dear friend, Horace Slughorn, also informs me that he has already hand-picked Hogwarts' two representatives for the potions invention category of the competition.

It is my great pleasure to share the names of our team members in the potions invention category with you tonight, especially considering the sadly often lacking inter-House collaboration our two champions always excelled at in the past," Dumbledore trailed off here to heighten the curiosity of his audience, and to let the two young people, whom he and Horace Slughorn were addressing with his speech, ponder the extraordinary quality of their hopefully not entirely gone previous companionship.

"The Hogwarts' champions in the potions invention category will be Mr. Severus Snape from the House of Slytherin –" several people, most of them coming from Slytherin, readily clapped, this name had been expected by the students who knew Severus and his reputation "– and Miss Lily Evans, from Gryffindor." It was the Gryffindor table that erupted with cheerful clapping and shouts now. Just one of the Lions sat frozen in shock and stared in front of her – Lily Evans herself. While her housemates cheered over her nomination, the only word she was able to voice was a quiet "No."

Dumbledore either did not notice her reaction or decided not to react to it – most likely at Slughorn's request. Instead, he acclaimed a sincerely sounding: "Congratulations to our nominees!" and applauded to Severus and Lily himself, joined in by the rest of the faculty and the two remaining Houses. "The rest of you, please, read the announcements hanged out in your Common Rooms and apply by Professor Slughorn should you like to join! And now, let this old man amuse you by the entertaining name the Ministry of Magic decided to gift to this new contest while the food is being served." He clapped his hands once and the food started to appear on the tables. "Tuck in and enjoy _"The Bubbling Cauldron Full of Promising Glory!_ Thank you!"

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 _A/N: One more chapter to go, should be up in the next weeks._


	2. Chapter 2

**Sixth Year Potions**

 _by Iva1201_

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 **Part 2**

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The next Potions class, Severus Snape grudgingly took his previously accustomed seat at the front table to the left side of Slughorn's classroom. He did not enjoy following Slughorn's orders, but he felt it would be a smart course of action, in particular seeing to the happening in the first week of classes. It would not bode well to antagonise his own House teacher and Potions Professor on top, especially not if one desired a decent career in the field.

Severus Snape was a Slytherin and, while brave, he lacked the recklessness of Gryffindor, and kept his goals on mind. For the very same reason, he also joined the Slug Club when invited – despite not enjoying the usually much too light-hearted coming together, unless Lily joined too. But this was over now – if not something unpredictable happened, Lily was not going to truly speak to him ever again. Pondering that, Severus sighed in defeat. He fished for his textbook in his bag then, hoping to distract himself while awaiting the arrival of his former Gryffindor friend. He very much hoped that Lily would also follow Slughorn's biding and would take the chair next to him – dreading the moment all the same.

When Lily Evans finally arrived, a few moments before the start of the class, she immediately looked towards their old bench, likely to see if Severus had already taken the seat there. Spotting him there, she gave a little neutral nod, for all it looked relieved that he had taken the decision from her, and after exchanging a few partying words with Mary, she too walked towards the front left table.

Once seated next to him, Lily inclined towards her former friend, and Severus's heart gave out a beat (or so it felt). But Lily only wanted to remark: "I am doing this for Slughorn and Hogwarts, Severus, not you. Do me a favour, if you can, and do not abuse this to pursue your own agenda. It would do you no good anyway."

Severus was not sure if he should smile or frown – for he was happy to have her at his side again and at the same time pained to hear her words. But in the end he decided that as ill at ease as this felt, he preferred to have Lily close to him at least once a week. He gave an affirmative nod and said: "I won't, Lily, promise."

And so started the most awkward Potions partnership Hogwarts had seen in a good while.

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Severus had never before noticed how very accustomed he was to work with Lily at his side. She was almost as talented in Potions as he and it had always been a welcomed challenge to improve his potions to be a shade better than hers.

While Lily usually worked based on the textbook, Severus tended to change small things – such as chopping instead of cutting or squeezing instead of crushing ingredients – to possibly develop an even better formula to create a particular drought. With Lily at his side, he had the very best opportunity to compare the quality of the two brews and could evaluate their various stages during the brewing process as well as the final products. The margins of Severus's Potions textbooks were all filled with improvement suggestions he had come up with during the years of his Potions partnership with Lily.

It pained Severus greatly when he realised Lily was not inclined to continue with this routine. In fact, once she caught him peering into her cauldron by the third or fourth class of that term, she told him off quite strictly.

"Grow up, Severus," Lily said sternly. "Make your own potion by the book and only then, once you know how to make it, attempt to improve it, if you wish to experiment so very much. I shall no longer be your lab rat, I am sorry. I should have stopped this nonsense years ago, anyway – there would have been much less accidents like that."

Severus frowned over this statement, but privately he had to admit to himself that there had been a couple of mishaps during the years – many of which could have led to serious accidents which he and Lily had only narrowly avoided. If Lily no longer wished to work with him, his experiments might turn pretty dangerous.

Hurt, he bit his lips, deeply disappointed and not at all happy with Lily's decision. But Lily had apparently decided that she would not be tolerant of his "nonsense" any longer. Severus would need to learn to live with it – as he was slowly and painfully learning to go on without her friendship.

"Fine," he drawled through his clenched teeth, "as you wish. I do not need you anyway."

But he did need her, so very, very much – both as his Potions partner as well as his best friend. Yet, Lily had decided he was a lost case and there was no way in changing her mind – or at least Severus was not aware of any.

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Two months into the term, Slughorn arrived to the classroom holding an officially looking envelope with a Ministry seal at its back. "The first assignment for our champions!" he announced excitedly, walking towards the table Lily and Severus involuntarily shared and waving the envelope firmly clutched in his bulky hand. "We need to wait for the Headmaster to open it as he is the only one authorised to do so – he shall be here exactly at 10."

Slughorn laid the letter on the table between the two young wizards and went on with his speech. "Once you know the assignment, you can start working on it straight away. You will have one month to complete the assignment to the best of your abilities. You are both advanced enough to skip on the standard classes, so you have my permission to work on the assignment here instead of brewing with the rest of the class – provided you do your research after the classes and do not stay behind with the curriculum. You may also use the classroom after the classes should you need more brewing time."

He stepped back towards his own table and beamed at the whole class from there. "I have a small incentive for Mr. Snape and Miss Evans, too – they shall both receive a vial of Felix Felicis from my own stores after they have successfully completed their assignment. And a vial of Felix Felicis is also my prize for the one of you who will brew the best Draught of the Living Death for me today. The ingredients –" he waved his hand at the blackboard behind him and a recipe written in his hand appeared there "– is on the blackboard now. You may start."

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When Slughorn announced he and Lily would get a free vial of Felix Felicis if they succeeded in the first assignment of the brewing competition, Severus could not believe his luck. Up until that point he felt very conflicted about his (and Lily's) forced participation in anything as silly named as _"The Bubbling Cauldron Full of Promising Glory",_ but a free vial of the liquid luck he himself could not brew over the summer due to the costs of the ingredients and the long time the potion took to brew would be a worthy pay back, he thought.

Without the lucky potion, Lily would never reconcile with him – he saw it clearly now. They had shared the work station in Potions for two months already and the only words Lily saw fit to address him with were about passing things to her and minding his own work.

Yes, Felix Felicis might save him. And Severus was a brewer competent enough to gain it.

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Lily, on the other hand, was rather taken aback by Slughorn's offer. When she had agreed to participate in the competition, despite her great reservation when it came to working with Severus again, she did it as her personal favour to Slughorn and Hogwarts. It did not occur to her that Slughorn might try to bribe them to achieve the best possible result.

Gazing sideways at Severus, Lily saw he did not mind the offer – and strangely, that upset her even more. The two past months working with him at her side, despite her initial fears, proved to be unexpectedly tolerable – Severus usually minded his own potion and ingredients (well, at least since she had asked him to do so much) and did not bother her unless they shared some ingredients or work utensils and needed to pass them to the one another. She had hoped that there might be some phase of them simply tolerating each other and being able to exchange a neutral word or two which would substitute for the lost "best friends" and resulting "not on speaking terms" statuses, but obviously, Severus had not changed at all – thinking of his own benefit only.

She sighed in defeat – despite what Severus thought, she had not wanted to end their friendship. She only was not able to watch him heedlessly destroying himself, aiming for a dark path. That he had been unable to stop himself calling her "Mudblood" proved only how far he was already gone. She had hoped that he would see reason once she decided to act instead of talking – but clearly Severus did not miss their friendship enough to change his ways.

Well then, if she was to get her vial of Felix Felicis, she would take it and attempt one last time to save her former best friend. She only hoped that drinking the potion would indeed prove as favourable as Slughorn had claimed.

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 _A/N: I apologise but apparently there will be 3 parts of the story, not 2. I hope you do not mind. (-:_


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